A Lakeside Encounter
by JamesLuver
Summary: John goes swimming at the lake where he threw the limp corrector, where he runs into Thomas. Prompted by filzlatsche on Tumblr.


**A/N:** This was written for filzlatsche's prompt on Tumblr.

I have never written Bates/Thomas interaction before in my life. I'm not sure that I did it entirely well, but this is what I came out with. I would really like to see Thomas and Bates' relationship develop in an interesting way in series four, rather than having more boring "Thomas plots against Bates". Unfortunately, the latter is seeming more likely right now.

If you're not a fan of Anna/Bates, I'd suggest that you stop reading when Thomas leaves._  
_

**Disclaimer:** I don't own _Downton Abbey_.

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_A Lakeside Encounter_

Usually, he tried not to let it bother him. But sometimes he would look at his leg, more mangled than ever thanks to the infernal metal cage that had not worked, and he would feel shame at the way that he let his leg dictate his life.

So that was why his half-day found him limping that long-forgotten path back to the lake where he had disposed of the limp corrector all that time ago. He had hidden a towel under his jacket, cautious of the questions that might be directed his way. Although he and Anna rarely spent their half-days apart now that they were happily married, today she had told him to go ahead, Lady Mary having a particularly bad day. Understandably, the loss of her husband was still so raw.

Once at the lakeside, he came to a pause. It was secluded away from the rest of the estate, hidden in a world of its own. John knew that it was unlikely that he would be disturbed, which made it the perfect place for him to prove that he was stronger than his leg.

He quickly stripped down to nothing. Leaving his clothes away from the bank, he ventured into the shallow water. He winced. It was absolutely freezing, but he persevered. He wouldn't be beaten.

He spent a few minutes simply acclimatising to the temperature, before plunging in further. Taking strong strokes away from the banking, he revelled in the feeling of lightness that overcame him. He had always been a strong swimmer in his youth, but he hadn't done any of it since his injury all those years ago. It felt wonderful to be doing it again, and he found that his leg didn't hinder him much at all, which was a huge relief. He was enjoying the invigorating feelings of making his limbs work, of feeling the water run down his throat and soak his hair.

And then he froze when he heard the shout from the banking. No, it couldn't be. Of all the people…

Thomas Barrow was standing there, arms folded. John suddenly felt more vulnerable than he had in his whole life, painfully aware that he wasn't wearing any clothes.

"What the bloody hell are you doing?" Thomas called to him with the curl of his lip.

"Isn't it obvious?" John shot back, paddling closer, but making sure that he was crouching shoulder-deep in water.

Thomas arched an eyebrow lazily. "I just wasn't aware that you'd lost your mind quite yet, Mr. Bates, that's all."

John bit back the sharp answer that he wanted to give – after all, Thomas hadn't been quite as bad since he had helped to save his position at Downton a year before – so settled instead for asking, "well, what are _you_ doing out here?"

"I've been sent to look for you."

"What? By who?"

"Your wife, of course. She's been looking for you all over. I happened to be passing this way and saw you. No doubt she'll be following me in a moment. Probably thought I had more of an idea than the other hapless lot she roped into helping."

Thomas' arrogant tone made John want to roll his eyes, but he refrained. The under-butler pulled out a cigarette and flared it up casually. Neither of them spoke for a moment. John wasn't sure what to say. His scalp was prickling with discomfort.

Thomas, by contrast, seemed to be completely at ease – probably because he had the upper hand.

"So," he said after a few moments, blowing out a plume of smoke, "what made you think that swimming in a bloody public _lake_ was a good idea?"

John bristled. "It's none of your business."

"Of course it is, if it's happening on Lord Grantham's private land."

They stared at each other determinedly for a moment, before John sighed heavily. He hated having to admit even the slightest weakness to Thomas Barrow, but he gritted his teeth and decided to be the bigger man. "I just wanted to see if my leg could still handle it, is all. Are you satisfied yet? Or are you going to drag me out just to check that I'm telling the truth?"

Thomas flushed red and glared. "I'm not sure how that would prove anything, Mr. Bates. And believe me, I'm not that desperate."

An awkward silence settled along them, before Thomas threw his cigarette to the floor and stamped it out. For a moment, he stood there staring. It seemed to John as if he was debating with himself over something.

"Perhaps that's not a bad mindset to take," he said at last. "Not letting your injury get the best of you. It's about bloody time that you didn't, really. You did let it for long enough. I didn't let my injury stop me, and you shouldn't let yours, either."

Was Thomas _encouraging_ him? John could barely fathom it.

"I won't," he said, bewildered.

They were interrupted then by Anna's distant calling. Thomas turned away.

"You'd better stay there," he said gruffly. "I'll go and tell her that I've found you. Don't make this a regular habit though, Bates. It'd be too tempting not to tell his lordship."

Before he could say anything else, the under-butler had walked away. John had a few minutes to reflect on the encounter with a mixture of bemusement and unease before Anna was crashing through the bushes.

"There you are," she said. The colour in her cheeks was high. "I was worried about you when I couldn't find you at the cottage."

"That's something that you should never do."

"You make it very difficult not to."

He chuckled for a moment, until he saw her reach around her back. His throat was suddenly dry.

"Anna, what are you doing?" he asked.

"What does it look like?" she asked him. "I'm coming for a swim, of course."

The dress dropped. She started on her corset.

His throat worked desperately. "But what if someone else comes along?"

"They won't. Thomas said he'd say we've gone home. Actually, he was very nice to offer to help me."

The idea of Thomas actually doing something nice for him and Anna was something that John couldn't quite believe. But then he remembered his comment from a moment ago and shook his head. Maybe Thomas _was_ less unpleasant than he'd given him credit for.

Nevertheless, he found that he couldn't voice any of these thoughts when his wife stepped out of her undergarments, and the only other thing he could do was groan when she slipped into the water and pressed her glistening body up against his own. He decided to forget all about it as she reached up to kiss him. When they broke apart, Anna was grinning.

"Come on," she said, beginning to swim away, "you can show me the more private places."

John didn't need telling twice.


End file.
